Do They Still Think Of Me?
by BonesBird
Summary: After 5 years away, one member of Columbia's senior staff wonders if she's been forgotten to memory. ((Romulan War Series continuation))


**As promised. This just fills in a gap. As people who have read my Romulan War series will remember, I killed off Veronica Fletcher. Well... Maybe I didn't kill her off. Set in February 2162, around 6 months after the end of "The Romulan War Stories 8".**

**Shin xx**

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><p>The last 5 years had been harder than Veronica Fletcher would have wanted to admit. Not because of the work, that had been easy. It had been the fact she'd been behind enemy lines, reporting to Starfleet when she could, but mostly she was just there. She was getting what data she could. She'd been lucky never to be made, now she was back on Earth, but as of yet she hadn't been allowed to see anyone, or even speak to anyone that she'd known before.<p>

Which had been the main reason she'd wanted to come home. She knew that, if anyone discovered her work with the Romulans her life would be under threat, but the truth was that she wasn't worried about that. She was more worried about not having a life to live. In the last two weeks, since she'd actually returned, she'd had to prove that she was still loyal to Earth and it's allies. She now knew the coalition had evolved into this fledgling Federation, munch in the same way the League of Nations had evolved into the UN after the second world war.

She was so proud of everything that he friends had managed to do in the years she'd been away. It wasn't the easiest for her, because she didn't even know which of her colleagues and friends were alive. She knew that both Jonathan Archer and Erika Hernandez had made it through the end of the war. The Romulan intelligence services had included that in their reports. Apparently her friends had been mandatory targets for the Romulans, but they hadn't been caught.

There were things even about them that she didn't know. Were they still together? After so long she couldn't imagine them being alone, or apart. They were two halves of a whole, and she hoped their relationship had managed to make it through the war and they were happy now.

Out of everyone on Earth, the only person she saw regularly was one of the aides from the admiralty. The one who had dragged her back and forth to meetings with psychologists and admirals. He was a lieutenant, and she'd probably been sitting her Starfleet entrance exam when he'd been born. he seemed so young.

It was during one of these observational visits that she was thinking about her friends, and the people she had spent the time before the war depending on. She wanted to be able to depend on them again, and know that they were still interested in having her in their lives. The likelihood was that they didn't even think of her often, and when they did she was probably just a fond memory. Similar to A.G. and Admiral Forrest.

Maybe that was what hurt her the most right now. Was she seeing what life would have been like if she had really died, if this was five years after her actual death. People move on, not really thinking about the people they lost years earlier, other than occasionally. Maybe that was why A.G. Robinson had been stuck in her mind. He had had a family though. A wife, and a baby on the way. People who would remember him fondly no matter the time.

She had only had her crewmates, and a few friends. She'd never been close to her mother. Probably to her mother it was just confirmation of something that had happened a long time earlier. She'd been losing her daughter for years when she 'died' on Columbia. It probably wouldn't have changed much. Maybe her Starfleet friends remembered her. If she was at all lucky.

There were questions she needed to ask, but most of them she doubted this lieutenant would be able to tell her what she needed to know. Though there were obviously other concerns, not just her narcissistic need to be remembered. She wanted to know what Earth was like, what was happening outside of the four walls she'd been relegated too when she got here. "What's it like out there?"

"Free, and calm." That wasn't exactly the question she wanted answering. She'd wanted the weather, the temperature. She wanted to experience the weather of home again. She wanted to feel like she was home again, and not just locked in this boring building. The lieutenant was oblivious to that, and continued rambling. She just zoned out until he said something she was interested in again. "The admirals have all the evidence they need. I'm sure you'll soon be released."

"Maybe." She still wasn't sure about that. She'd been undercover with the enemy for five years. Would they really let her go free after that? She hoped so. She could get more of her answers that way. "I have people I want to learn about. People I want to see, see if they still care." She wanted to know if they cared, and more importantly, she wanted to know how many of them had survived. Was Trip still alive? Malcolm? Kiona? Brynn? Sidra? Her friends.

Veronica was suddenly aware that the lieutenant was studying her intensely, and she wondered what he found so interesting, or what insights into her behaviour he was getting from her staring out of the window feeling maudlin. Would he even know that she was feeling maudlin? Would it even matter? "You should go." He said eventually, and she felt like the rug had been pulled from under her.

"What?" She asked, how did he know that she'd been considering going to see anyone? He didn't know her, he had never served under her. How would he know? She was pretty sure none of her friends would have been able to tell her exact thoughts.

It was clear that the lieutenant was pretty certain in what he thought. Maybe he had a right to be. "To see Hernandez." He clarified, and damn hadn't he hit it on the nose. Who better to go and see, to learn about what she had missed. They had been best friends once upon a time. Maybe, in time, Erika would be able to accept that she had lied. That was also why she was worried about it.

"Should I?" She asked, probably unnecessarily. When it came to making this decision, Veronica would have to make it alone, and it would be interesting to see where her mind fell on this decision.

The lieutenant just shrugged. Maybe he wasn't as helpful as she'd hoped that he would be. "You've been thinking about it since you got back." He said simply, and once again she was surprised at how well he seemed to know her, despite her not even really knowing his name.

"I have." There was no point lying now, was there? He knew, and probably wouldn't believe her anyway if she did deny it. "It's been years. Her life has moved on. She probably doesn't even think about me any more." It hurt to admit that, but Erika had other friends, and she'd had a whole life planned. There was no reason Erika would think about her at all anymore.

The lieutenant, however, scoffed and shook his head. "You're wrong there."

"How do you know?" She needed to know that. How would this lieutenant know what Erika was thinking, whether she thought about anyone. That was surely not something she would say anywhere near someone she didn't know.

"I work for her husband, they talk about you often." Husband? They'd tied the knot. That made her happier than she would have ever though. They had always been perfect together. The next sentence knocked the air out of her. "Their daughter is named for you."

That was a surprise. A happy, wonderful surprise. She had never seen Erika as the maternal type, and she'd never really wanted children. Maybe the war had changed more than Veronica had expected. It was hard to believe that Erika had started a family. "They have a daugher?"

"Yes, she's six weeks old, roughly." A recent addition, probably brought about in the post-war excitement. She was glad to know that someone had been happy enough to create something lasting. "She was a premie though, they only took her home a week or so ago." That was more worrying, but if they'd been allowed to take her home, the baby couldn't be that sick. A baby with her name. That was something she'd never expected.

"I'm glad she's healthy. They deserved some happiness." They really did deserve it. They had both been through so much. Jon had been to the Expanse, Erika had been held by the Orions, both of them had somehow managed to survive the war. So, she was excited to know they'd created something that they'd almost had 12 years earlier.

"You should see her." The lieutenant persisted, and now she realised maybe he was right. Maybe she should see Erika, and her family.

So she'd have to plan her day around that. When she got out. If she got out. She was going to plan it as if it was going to happen easily. "Maybe. Tomorrow."

The lieutenant then stood up and smiled at her. Clearly his time watching her was done. "I'll see you in the morning." He said, confirming her suspicion. As he walked to the door she realised that she should thank him, for poking her out of this mood.

"Yeah. Thanks." She echoed after him a little lamely, then went back to her window. It was time for her to start thinking seriously, because it was time that she begin starting her life again.


End file.
